What I Want
by Saberae
Summary: Ban and Ginji have been long time friends and partners. But, their relationship is slipping, and Ban feels that it's time that the two of them went their seperate ways. Is this really what he wants? some BanxGinji
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: My first "Get Backers" fanfiction. I started it off pretty quick, because I wasn't in the mood for an entire introductory chapter. It might seem rushed, and pointless, and short, and over-all not good, but, it'll get better. Well, I don't own anything related to Get Backers, etc. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 1**

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DROPPED THE NECKLACE!?" Ban yelled, hovering over his partner Ginji, in the most menacing way imaginable.

"I-I'm sorry Ban-chan, I though I had a hold on it, but it must've slipped out of my hand when we jumped into the water," Ginji replied, shrinking under his looming partner.

Ban threw himself back onto his stool by the counter, at the café known as the 'Honky Tonk'. After pulling out his box of cigarettes, and placing one in between his lips, he lit it and followed it up with a sigh of frustration. Placing his head in his hands, he glowered at his coffee mug sitting idly by.

Ginji sat next to him, melancholy, hands in his lap, starring down at the floor in between him and the counter. Ginji shot up spontaneous, nervous, glances at his fuming friend, but only to end in him returning to the view of the wooden floor.

"How long are you two going to keep this up," Paul, the owner of the Honky Tonk, questioned. He was sick of these two's arguing time and again. He needed the recovery service to get in better spirits, so they'd accept a new job, so they could finally pay off their ever growing tab.

Before Paul was ever able to get a reply, the jingle of the café door opening sounded.

"Hey Recovery Boys, I got a new job for you," Hevn, a negotiator, sung, as she made her way to the stool on the other side of Ban. "Alright, this one's going to pay up really well, but first, I need to get the necklace from the previous-"

"We don't have it," Ban interjected, starring at the wall behind the counter.

"What?" Hevn asked, slightly confused. "How can you _not_ have it?"

"Easy, we _don't_ have it," Ban replied, caustically. "Ginji lost-"

"I lost it, Hevn. I dropped it while we were making out way to shore from the ship, I'm really sorry." Ginji cut in, warily bringing his eyes up to meet with the woman's.

"Oh, Ginji…well, I'm sure you two can get it back, you are the 'Get Backers' after all," replied Hevn, smiling. "Well, I'll leave that to you two then," she said, standing up from her seat, and heading towards the door.

"Wait a second, Hevn," Ban said, before Hevn made it to the door. "You weren't planning on giving this new assignment…to anyone else, were you?" he questioned suspiciously, "Knowing now that we can't take it on this instant?" he continued, having a certain beast-master named Shido, in mind.

"Well, my client wishes for this object to be recovered as soon as possible, so, since you two can't do it, I was planning on asking Shido." Hevn replied, moving once again towards the door.

"W-Wait, Miss Hevn," Ginji called out, "We can get the necklace back. Let _us _have the new assignment; we can do it, right Ban-chan?" Ginji asked, glancing over at Ban.

"…" Ban sat silent.

"Ban-chan?" Ginji pried.

"…Ya…we'll do it," Ban replied, pushing his sunglasses up further on his nose.

"_sigh_, Alright," Hevn responded reluctantly. "But, I'm going to need that necklace no later that 10pm tonight, understood?" she stated.

"You can count on us," Ginji replied, now in a much better mood than he had been in previously. Hevn left the café, leaving Ban, Ginji, and Paul alone.

"Well, you two had better get going, it's getting close to three o'clock now, only seven hours to finish the assignment. Plus, you don't want your '100 success rate' to go down the tube, do you?" Paul said, from behind his newspaper, trying to get the two loafers out of his café.

"Right," Ginji exclaimed, turning towards the door. "Ready Ban-chan?" Ginji asked, as he turned around, expecting his partner to be right behind him, but much to he surprise, he found him still sitting at the counter. "…Ban-chan?" Ginji whispered, as he approached Ban and placed a hand on his shoulder to signal to him that they were going.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Ban said, standing up, smothering his cigarette in the nearby ashtray.

The two recoverers made their way towards the door of the café, heading outside to their nearby car.

"Hey Ban-chan, do you think before we go to the ocean, we can get a bite to eat first?" Ginji asked. This caused Ban, who was walking in front of Ginji, to stop short and tense up a bit.

"Ginji, we don't have the money right now," Ban replied, unhappily, "and we won't have the money until we get that necklace back, so let's get going."

"Awww, alright," Ginji replied disappointedly, walking to the passenger side of the car.

"Don't worry, we can have dinner as soon as we give Hevn the necklace, alright," Ban said to his friend, pushing the fact that Ginji had lost the recovery, to the back of his mind. Ban climbed into the driver's seat, turning on the ignition. Ginji clambered into the passenger seat, closing the door behind him. "Alright, we're off to recover our recovery," Ban said, half gung-ho, half annoyed at the fact that they had just done this a few hours earlier.

* * *

_A/N: Well, there's the first chapter. I'm going to try my best to avoid as much as the recoveries as possible, because personally, I don't really enjoy reading about recoveries. So, I'll include bits and pieces, but not entire scenarios. I'll try to make the next chapter a bit longer, sorry about the length, and thanks for reading._


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Chapter 2, this isn't a major plot-developing chapter, the core of the story won't happen for another chapter or two, but, I need to build up to it, hope you enjoy.

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 2**

The Get Backers emerged from the clear, but rough, water, and stumbled onto the beach breathing heavily, only to collapse onto the sand.

"What a waste of time," Ban moaned, lying down, looking up at the '1-hour-left-until-they-needed-the-necklace' sky.

"I'm sorry, Ban-chan," Ginji said woefully, "I should have given it to you-"

"Forget about it Ginji. Its fine, we'll get it back, we just have to keep looking." Ban consoled, as he rose from his position on the sand.

"You're right Ban-chan; we'll get it back, and still have time to spare!" Ginji exclaimed, no longer the least bit exhausted from their three-hour swim.

"Alright," Ban began, sighing and looking around at the beach, "Maybe it has already washed up on shore, so Ginji you look down that way, and I'll head over this way."

The two split up from there, one heading south, the other heading north along the beach. They searched every crab hole, every piece of seaweed, everything that was anything that they came across, bud sadly to no avail. Half an hour went by before the two met up again.

"Did you find it?" Ban asked his partner, praying he had.

"No, I'm sorry Ban-chan," Ginji replied, looking down at the ground.

"Ginji, forget it, we'll get other jobs." Ban said, trying his best to comfort his friend. "Well, we better head back to the café to get the news to Hevn, c'mon," he concluded, placing his hands in his pockets, and heading up to where the car was parked beyond the nearby sand dunes. Ginji showed his hands into his pockets as well, and slowly followed Ban up the sandy dunes, when he noticed something.

"What's this-" Ginji murmured to himself, confused, "Oh no…" he continued, eyes widening as he pulled his left hand out of his pocket.

"Ginji, stop talking to yourself, and hurry up," Ban called back, without turning around as he opened the car door.

"_What should I do, what should I do!?_" Ginji contemplated with extreme urgency, "_If Ban-chan sees that I had it then entire time, he'll kill me! Should I bury it, or, or…_"

"What's that in your hand?" Ban questioned his fretful friend, nearly appearing out of nowhere next to Ginji.

"AHHHH-n-chan, what are you talking about?" Ginji asked nervously, shoving his hand back into his pocket.

"Ginji," Ban continued, staring Ginji straight in the eye.

"I-I um…" Ginji stuttered, averting his gaze from Ban's piercing eyes. "I…I found the necklace," Ginji said uneasily, removing his hand and the necklace from his pocket.

"What!? That's great, Ginji! Now we can get paid, c'mon let's hurry back to Hevn," Ban said, ecstatic with the luck they just experienced, as he turned and made his way back up the sand dune.

"R-right," Ginji replied, following Ban to the car.

* * *

Ban sat in the driver's seat, a slight grin on his face, and had an over-all joyful air about him. He was gonna get paid.

Ginji sat in the passenger's seat, a slight grimace on his face, and had an over-all anxious air about him. He was gonna get killed.

"So, Ginji," Ban began, breaking the silence as they drove down the highway, "Where exactly was the necklace anyways? Was is on that sand dune, no that'd be to far away from the ocean. Did you find it when we had split up? Ban asked curiously, keeping his eyes on the road in front of him.

"Well…you see, I, um, it was…" Ginji started.

"Hmm?" Ban glanced over to his side where Ginji was sitting, finding him to be very worried about something. "Ginji, what's wrong? Where'd you find it?"

"I had it," Ginji murmured.

"Ya, I know, where did you _find _it though," Ban said, a little irritated.

"It was, in my pocket…the entire time," Ginji continued, his voice almost dissipating to nothing.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Ban-chan?" Ginji asked, reaching for his partner's shoulder, only to draw back without delay.

"You…had it the entire time," Ban chuckled, "Even in the café, before we left. You never lost it?"

"No…" Ginji answered, preparing himself.

"GINJI I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" Ban roared, as he grabbed Ginji by the shirt collar. "HOW could you NOT REALISE that is was in YOUR POCKET the ENTIRE TIME!?" he continued.

"Ban-chan, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but, but…"Ginji pleaded. "Ban-chan, the road," was the last he was able to say before he was too dazed to do anything, due to being shaken violently by Ban. Ban turned to the road, only to see the view of the front of a large semi-truck engulfing his windshield.

"Shit!" Ban hissed, as he let Ginji go, and turning the steering wheel violently to the right.

* * *

The two recoverers continued down the road, nearing the part of the city that housed the Honky Tonk.

Ban now gripped the steering wheel with such a fierce grip, he was sure he was going to crush it. He had already clenched his teeth in such a manner, that he accidentally bit his cigarette in half, and he now sat fuming, staring out at the road in front of him.

Ginji sat, with his head leaning against the window, looking out at the people and cars they drove by. He hated it when Ban was mad at him, but, things always got better, and they would soon return to normal.

The car finally pulled up to the curb in front of the café, and Ban immediately unlatched his seatbelt, left the car, and slammed the door behind him, causing Ginji to grimace. After Ban went inside, Ginji climbed out of the car, closing the door behind him, and following his partner's path into the Honky Tonk.

Ban was seated in his stool by the counter, having lit a cigarette for use within just a few seconds of sitting down.

"Alright, Hevn. We got the necklace back before the deadline, where's our payment?" Ban immediately questioned the negotiator.

"Well, give me the necklace, and I'll give you your pay." Hevn replied. Ban sighed heavily.

"Hey, Ginji," Ban called out, "Bring that necklace over here." Ban turned around, to find Ginji just entering the doorway.

"O-Oh, right, here it is," Ginji stammered, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the golden, diamond encrusted necklace and setting it on the counter by Hevn and Ban.

"Well, there it is negotiator, now where's our money?" Ban pried, anxious for their much needed cash.

"Hmm, well, that's the necklace alright, here's your pay," Hevn said, reaching into her purse, and placing several small stacks of bills on the counter in front of Ban.

Ban's and Ginji's eyes widened, they couldn't remember the last time they had gotten paid in full like this, it was heaven.

"I think this should cover it," Paul said, after snatching up five of the ten stacks of cash, "You're debt free, doesn't it feel good?" the owner continued, counting the cash he picked up.

"Whoa, Hey there, that's our money," Ban started, "We'll be the ones who chose when we want to pay our tab off, not you!"

"Well, see you three later, I'll give you that new assignment tomorrow," Hevn interjected, as she picked up her things, and left the café.

Ban put his head down on the counter, muttering something about how he never gets paid enough.

"Baaaaaan-chaaan"

Ban grimaced, and lifted his head from the counter, he knew what was coming.

"Ban-chan, can we go get something to eat?" Ginji begged. Ban sighed again, standing up from his seat.

"Alright, let's go." Ban replied, making his way for the car, yet again.

"Yes! You're the best Ban-chan!" Ginji exclaimed, leaping towards his friend, and smothering him with a hug.

Ban could only stand there willingly with Ginji doing this for so long, there had to be an end to everything.

"Okay, Okay, that's enough Ginji, I thought you were hungry," Ban said, pushing Ginji off of him.

"That's right, let's go," Ginji said, running to the car, and climbing in. "C'mon, Ban-chan, let's go!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Ban replied to his eager partner, as he climbed back into the driver's seat, turning the ignition on.

* * *

_A/N: Well, there you go, Chapter 2. I don't think it was too bad, but for some reason, I feel like it doesn't seem to be very interesting so far. Maybe it's just me, or maybe it's because I havn't really gotten the plot started. Well, I hope you guys liked it. -Saberae_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: Here's chapter three, I guess I will always end up progressing the plot slowly, making it move along to fast just isn't my style, haha, enjoy! -Saberae

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 3**

Ban and Ginji, their seats reclined, lay asleep in the car outside the Honky Tonk. It was completely out of the question for them to buy an apartment, or to stay in a hotel of any sort. It was just way too much money. It was the rainy-season of the year, and the perpetual drizzle outside played a white noise in the background when it hit the glass windows, and metal roof of the car.

Ban tossed a bit in his sleep, and soon found himself awake. He sat up, and twisted the keys to see what time it was on the car's clock. 2:15am. He lent back, propping himself up with his elbows as he glanced over at his friend, who was facing him in the seat beside his. Ginji slept soundly, a calm expression on his face as he breathed in light rhythm. Ban sighed lightly, and laid back down in his seat, turning away from his partner.

* * *

"Baaan-chan," Ginji moaned groggily as he woke up, "I'm hungry." Ginji opened his eyes to find his partner still asleep, with his back turned to him. "Baaaan-chaaan," Ginji continued reaching over, and beginning to slowly shake Ban awake. Ban's eyes flickered open, vision slightly blurred from not opening them in several hours.

"What is it, Ginji" Ban yawned, as he sat up.

"I'm hungry," Ginji answered.

"You just woke up, how can you be hungry already?" Ban asked, raising his seat up to its normal position, and rubbing his eyes. "And we can't go anywhere yet, not until we get our new job from Hevn." They then climbed out of the car, and made their way into the Honky Tonk.

"Good Morning!" Natsumi called out, as the Get Backers walked up to their seats at the counter.

"Hey, Natsumi!" Ginji greeted with a smile on his face, as he sat down.

"Have you heard from Hevn?" Ban asked the two behind the counter.

"Oh, she just called," Natsumi began," She said that the assignment she was going to give to you two will have to wait until tomorrow. She's meeting with another client today."

"Wow, Ban-chan, this is great, the jobs are just rolling in," Ginji exclaimed, turning to his partner.

"Heh, it seems that all those flyers and jobs are finally starting to pay off," Ban added, smirking at the thought of finally having enough money to live half-decently.

"What are you two going to do today, since you don't have an assignment I mean," Natsumi asked, drying the dishes she just finished washing.

"Hm, I don't really know. I wasn't planning anything since we were supposed to have a job today." Ban answered, considering possibilities to pass the day with.

"Well, let's go drive around, and see if we can find anything to do, Ban-chan." Ginji motioned.

"Anything's better than you two loitering around in my café all day," Paul briefly added when the two recoverers stood up.

"Whatever," Ban muttered, as he turned to head towards the door.

"See you guys when we get back!" Ginji said happily, as he bid the two, adieu.

* * *

They had been driving for a good half hour when Ginji finally broke the silence.

"Baaaan-chaaaan," Ginji said, turning to look at Ban.

"I know, you're hungry," Ban replied.

"How'd you know?" Ginji asked, brow furrowed, "haha, I guess you just know me all too well, huh Ban-chan." Ban sighed, and pulled to a stop in front of the red light.

"Well, Natsumi gave us those lunches, they're in back, eat one of those," Ban returned, trying his best to avoid a stop at a restaurant. The light turned green, and Ban released the brake, getting ready to cross the intersection.

"Which one?" Ginji asked, holding the two lunches up in front of him for Ban to see.

"I don't care, just pick one," Ban answered, pushing the lunches away from his face.

"But, is there a difference? Maybe you should check." Ginji continued.

"Ginji, I'm trying to drive, just look at them yourself, and get them out of my face," Ban said, irritated, once again pushing Ginji to the side.

While all this was happening, Ban had only just started moving the car through the intersection, and to his surprise, there was a car coming from his left that had just sped through the red light. Unfortunately, Ginji had been in the way of the left window, and Ban had discovered it just a second too late.

"Hold on, Ginji!" Ban yelled, as he turned the wheel, and floored the gas. Unfortunately, this didn't quite save them completely. The speeding vehicle slammed into the back of the car, causing them to violently turn about, and flip across the busy intersection, leaving them upside down in a wreck.

* * *

Ban's eyes flickered open, and soon winced at the pain he felt in his right arm, and side. Looking down, or rather up, at himself, he was suspended in the car by his seatbelt, and his white shirt was drenched in blood. Shards of glass from the shattered windshield and windows had found their way deep into his arm and side, causing a huge loss of blood.

"G-Ginji…? Are you…alright?" Ban asked, his voice a little hoarse. He glanced over at where Ginji, also hanging in his seatbelt, was.

"Ya, I'm alright, amazingly," Ginji returned. He seemed to be in much better shape than Ban was.

"Well, we...had better get out of here," Ban began, trying to figure out the best way to let himself down without hurting himself further.

Ginji undid his seat belt, and lowered himself down with ease. The car was completely upside down. All the windows were shattered, and glass carpeted what once was the roof of the car. When they first got hit, the car swung around slightly, and immediately flipped over, landing on Ban's side of the car first. This is when the glass shattered the most, and embedded itself into Ban, while leaving Ginji mostly unscathed.

Ginji pushed the car door open, and climbed out. Once he was free, he squatted back down, to look inside to see how his partner was doing. Ban was breathing heavily, gripping at his arm. There was blood all over him.

"Ban-chan, do you need…some help?" Ginji offered, looking in the wreckage at his mangled friend.

"I'm fine, Ginji," Ban snapped. "Just give me a second."

Ban unlatched his seatbelt, and tried to lower himself without using his right arm. After achieving this much, he turned to his door to find that it was crushed just enough, that it wouldn't open, so, without hesitation, Ban punched the door, sending it flying several yards away. He climbed out of the wreckage, and attempted to stand, but immediately reached for his car for support, when he realized how much blood he had lost.

"Ban-chan!" Ginji gasped, as he made his way around the vehicle, "Ban-chan, you're bleeding…a lot."

"Thanks Ginji, I didn't notice," Ban smirked, as he turned away from Ginji to start walking back to the Honky Tonk.

"Ban-chan?" Ginji implored, but Ban kept walking.

* * *

_A/N: Well, I hope I can figure out what to do with the next chapter. Who knows. But, on a quick note. My parents are letting me get my own car! - (great, and I'm writing about car accidents, why? haha). -Saberae_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: This is a short one. I basically just happened upon a decent ending point a little too early. –Saberae

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 4**

"…Ban-chan?" Ginji whispered, as Ban faded from his vision into the newly fallen rain.

Ginji stood by Ban's flipped car, and stood silently, staring in the direction Ban wandered off in. He had been cut slightly on his arms, but nothing compared to what his partner had received, and Ginji was afraid. He was afraid that this was once again, his fault.

Over the past month or so, Ban and Ginji had been assigned a decent number of jobs, and the money they earned had provided an honest living for the two. Ginji wasn't sure why, but he had been muddling up some of their missions as of late, and this caused Ban to be unhappy. He hated it when Ban was unhappy.

Anyways, after screwing up a bit during a few of the missions, Ban started getting a bit more irritable. Now, Ban was already one to be easily irritated, but, he wasn't one to hold grudges, at least, as far as Ginji knew of. Now, as time continued, Ginji noticed that Ban seemed to be distancing himself, alienating Ginji from himself. This hurt Ginji, why would his best friend, his best partner, his best everything, leave him in the dark like this.

"Sir? We asked if you were all right," a medic repeated once again.

"What? Oh…I'm fine." Ginji said, distantly. "But, Ban-chan…"

"We'll need you to come over here, sir," continued the medic, pointing in the direction of an ambulance and several police cars.

"No, not now…" Ginji said again, before he began following the path his partner had lain out.

"But, you need to-" The medic called out.

"Don't worry, I'll be back," Ginji said, running down the sidewalk, waving back to confirm he had heard the medic.

"_Ban-chan, I'm coming,_" Ginji thought, as he ran after his partner.

* * *

Ban continued down the sidewalk, no longer noticing the worried stares he was receiving from nearby passersby. 

"_What am I doing?_" Ban questioned himself, "_what's wrong with me? Why did I just walk away? The police are gonna raise hell when I get back._" Ban chuckled.

He stopped, and leaned against the nearby wall of a building. He had pulled out the shards of glass he could find, and his bleeding had basically stopped, which was definitely for the better because he was getting a bit dizzy. After lighting a cigarette, he soon heard a familiar voice from the direction he came from.

"Baaaaaaaan-chaaaaaaan!"

"I wonder who that could be," Ban asked aloud. Grinning slightly, he turned to meet his approaching friend.

"Ban-chan! What are you doing down here?" Ginji asked, panting a little from the run.

"Ginji, it was only a block away," Ban said, walking past his friend back towards the accident, but was forced to a stop.

"Ban-chan." Ginji said sternly; hand firmly on Ban's shoulder. "What's wrong, is it something I did, Is it-"

"Ginji, stop it." Ban interrupted. "It's nothing. I got into a car accident, how do you expect me to act?"

"Oh, well…" Ginji contemplated.

"Alright, c'mon; I know the police are probably throwing a fit right now." Ban concluded, pulling away from Ginji's grasp.

"…okay," Ginji conceded, following Ban back up the sidewalk.

* * *

"You got into a car accident?" Paul inquired, lowering his newspaper just enough to see the Get Backers' faces. 

"That's right," Ban answered, letting out a breath of smoke.

"It was my fault," Ginji began. Paul and Natsumi looked at Ginji, then over at Ban, expecting some sort of reply. There was nothing.

"Well, I have to go pick up the car from the mechanic. Fortunately, it wasn't damaged beyond repair, but it certainly drained our wallets." Ban sighed, standing from his seat, and walking towards the door.

"Ban-chan, I'll come with you," Ginji started, standing up as well.

"No, there's no need for both of us to go, you stay here in case Hevn comes with a new assignment, alright?" Ban insisted, leaving the café.

"But…" Ginji continued, knowing full well Ban couldn't hear him.

"_Sorry Ginji, I just need some time alone right now…_"

* * *

_A/N: There's chapter 4 for you, I hope it wasn't too shabby. Now, I'm having a REALLY hard time getting Ban and Ginji in character, and I don't really know why it's so hard for me. I'm trying to get them in character more and more as I write each chapter, but, I don't know if it's improving… -Saberae_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: I'm going to try to make these chapters a lot better than the last….four. Those past ones, I felt like I was…cheating on them (haha). They weren't as…full, and, interesting, and well, just not as good as I'd like them to be, so, I'm gonna try harder. Thanks to all of you that have been reading this, and thanks for the reviews! -Saberae

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 5**

It had finally stopped raining, and the sun was finally coming out. The blanket of thick grey clouds that previously coated the sky, faded away, allowing the sun's warmth to finally reach the earth below.

Ban had walked several blocks as of now, all the way trying his best to avoid being carried away by the large mobs of people that crowded the sidewalk. He carried himself in a very…cool manner, hands in pockets, eyes unwavering, standing tall, with a lovely cigarette tucked neatly in between his lips. It was rush hour, unfortunately, and that meant that not only were the roads packed tight with cars, but the sidewalks were packed tight with people. This resulted in a long wait at every corner to cross the street. Even when the road was crossable, some little old lady always managed to get in front of him, causing him to nearly trip over her and her walker. Ban finally broke free from the lady's walker, and turned down a relatively unused side street to get away from the mobs.

"Hey, I'm here for my car," Ban called into the shop as he rapped his knuckles on the open door of a nearby office.

"Oh, so you're the murderer, huh?" came a husky voice from inside the dark, dank office.

"The what-?" Ban raised an eyebrow

"You murdered that poor car of yours, I felt so bad for the poor thing." The bald, slightly heavier, man explained, moving out of the shadows of the office and into the light of day. Wincing at the bright light of the outside world, the man quickly moved towards where Ban's car was located, motioning for Ban to follow. "Well, here she is," the mechanic smiled, facing Ban ready to receive some praise.

"Um…are you sure that….that's _my_ car?" Ban choked, pale faced, terror in his eyes.

"Of course it's your-?" the mechanic began, turning around to look at his work. "Oh, haha, whoops, that's not yours," the mechanic laughed nervously, turning away from the charred remains of a small car that had exploded earlier while he was fixing it. "Yours is over here." The two men turned a corner, and approached _Ban's _car. "Well, haha, isn't she a beauty?" the mechanic started again. Ban whistled in amazement.

"Not bad, baldy," Ban said, recovering from his terrorized state when he had seen the burnt crispy thing in the other room. "So, how much is it," he continued, not once taking his eyes off his shiny, lovely, pride and joy of a car.

"It's going to be around $16,000.00" the mechanic said, happily

"That's not tha-," Ban's eyes widened. His cigarette fell from his hanging jaw and landed on the floor nearby, and his sunglasses slid a centimeter or two further down his nose. "…"

"Hey, you okay there buddy?" The mechanic asked, moving around in front of Ban, who remained frozen in his previously described state.

"…$16,000…?" Ban finally managed to utter after a relatively lengthy period of time.

"That's right, I had to fix the frame of the car, and replace the doors, and the paint job was…" the voice of the mechanic faded away to a low murmur in the background, as Ban stood shocked, in front of _his_ car, un able to hear anything from the outside world.

"_$16,000…wha-what kind of price is that. Can people actually charge that much for a car repair? I could've bought a new car, no, that'd be wrong. But…this money, where…where… where will I get that much money,_" Ban asked himself, a dazed look on his face, unable to comprehend reality.

* * *

Ginji sat at in the Honky Tonk, drawing invisible circles with his finger on the counter as he waited for Ban to return. Why would he have told him to wait for Hevn, when he knew full-well that Hevn wasn't coming until tomorrow. Ginji sat, unsure of what his partner was thinking when his trusty said partner passed by the window of the café, heading towards the front door.

"Ban-chan!" Ginji gasped, and ran outside to greet Ban. Realizing that Ban hadn't noticed him yet, Ginji ran up to the sulking man. "So Ban-chan, how'd it go? How much-" Ginji cut himself off this time. The look on Ban's face was that of total despair. "Ban-chan, um…how much was the repair? We could afford it, right?" Ginji asked hopefully. Ban slowly turned his sullen gaze from the ground, up to Ginji.

"It was…" Ban choked, just like he had earlier.

"Yes…" Ginji pressed.

"It was…"

"Go on…"

"$16,000," Ban said, slumped against the window. Ginji stepped back in amazement. The jobs hadn't been coming in like they used to, and the few that did, paid no more than a few thousand. "All of our savings are gone," Ban continued, mustering up enough courage to face the facts. Standing up from his brooding state, Ban slowly trudged into the café, and made his way to his stool, laying his head on the counter without a word.

"How'd it go?" Paul asked, lowering his newspaper, though upon seeing the current state of Ban, and the now approaching Ginji, he knew the answer. "Not so good, huh?"

"The car's alright," Ban began, adjusting his head so he could at least make eye contact with the owner. "It was just-"

"Just the price that got you, I know the deal," Paul cut in.

"So, where _is_ the car now, Ban?" Ginji questioned, sitting next to his best friend.

"Still at the mechanic," Ban replied, voice muffled from him laying his head in his arms on the counter.

"Where are we going to sleep?" Ginji realized, a wave of panic coming over him. "Ban-chan, I really, really, don't want to be a hobo."

"Don't worry Ginji; I got enough for a hotel room…for one night at least." Ban consoled, sitting up, regaining his composure.

* * *

Ban pushed the door to their mega-ultra-_tiny­-­cheap_ hotel room. Or rather, it was open, until it just fell off the hinges all together leaving them with an open doorway. Ban looked skeptically at the sparsely furnished room, and the door that now lay in the middle of it.

"I don't even think we can both lie down on the floor and sleep comfortably," Ginji pointed out.

"It's not that bad, and if you don't like it, you can go play hobo-for-a-day," Ban retorted, taking a few steps into the undersized bedroom. "Oh well, this'll have to do I guess," he shrugged, throwing himself on a moth-eaten couch in the corner.

"I don't like it," Ginji spat out.

"Well, there's not much I can do about that," Ban replied, swinging his legs up so he was now lying on the couch, and lighting yet another cigarette in the process.

"…what about dinner?" Ginji asked, worried about the answer.

"We got _no_ money, remember," Ban sighed, closing his eyes, and placing his arms behind his head. Ginji sighed and wandered over to the bathroom to see if it was better off than the rest of their room. Ban cracked an eye open, and watched as Ginji came back from his four second visit to the 'probably the worst bathroom you've ever seen in your life'. "Alright, look, here's a $10, go buy something to eat for yourself across the lot. I saw a convenience store over there." Ginji gasped, and, with new found energy, ran over to Ban and smothered him in such an embrace that the poor guy nearly swallowed his cigarette.

"Okay, okay, get off," Ban growled, finally able to breathe again.

"But, Ban-chan…" Ginji sulked.

"But what?" Ban questioned.

"You always used to let me hug you…" with this, Ban's eye twitched slightly.

"Ya, well, I don't like it anymore. I'm not really the touchy-feely type, so just…go buy your food." Ban finished, turning away from Ginji, so he was lying facing the back of the ancient couch.

"Do you-"

"Nope, I'm fine, it's all yours," Ban answered, hardly acknowledging Ginji.

"Um, alright then, I'll see you when I get back!" Ginji called back, as he made his way over the threshold, receiving a muffled grunt from his partner.

"_There's something wrong with Ban-chan,_" was all that ran through Ginji's mind as he left their hotel room.

* * *

_A/N: Personally, I feel a lot better about this chapter, it felt a lot more…real. I HOPE Ban and Ginji were in character, but…I don't know. Thanks for reading, and thanks again for the reviews. -Saberae_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: This one's short, but, it was sorta hard to write. I HOPE they're in character, ugh! -Saberae

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 6**

The lights that stood in the parking lot flickered on as Ginji returned to the hotel. The convenience store had a great sale on all food products, so he bought all sorts of thing for him and Ban to share. Although, Ginji was still slightly concerned about the way Ban had shut him out all of the sudden. Ban shut him out from time to time, but, this wasn't right, even for Ban.

"Hey, Ban-chan," Ginji called into the dark room as he stepped over the door that was still lying in the middle of the entrance way. "I got us some dinner." There was no response, so Ginji walked over to the small coffee table near the couch, expecting that Ban had fallen asleep, but there was no Ban. "Ban-chan?" Ginji glanced about the room unable to locate his Partner, and a sense of alarm soon began to come over Ginji. "B-Ban-chan?" Ginji called out worriedly. Had Ban left him there, did he do something wrong? Did the mafia come and take him away, or even worse…creditors. "Oh my gosh, they finally got hold of him! There must have been an army of creditors to take Ban out! How much money did he owe!?" Ginji frantically asked himself out loud.

"What the heck are you babbling about?" a voice asked from behind the hysterical Ginji.

"Ban-chan!" Ginji's eyes lit up as he spun around on his heel.

"What?" Ban asked, wearing his undershirt and pants, and drying his hair off with a towel as he stepped out of the bathroom. "Did something happen?"

"I thought you left me, Ban-chan!"

"Left you? Well, sorry for not leaving you a note. I was just taking a shower." Ban mused. "Oh, and watch out. The shower nozzle fell out of the wall and sprayed water everywhere when I first turned it on; so make sure it's screwed on tight before you use it." He cautioned, as he tossed the towel on the back of the couch and sat down.

"Man, at this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if the roof caved in around us in the middle of the night." Ginji added, jokingly. "Oh, now that you're here, we can eat dinner, it's right there on the table."

"Aw, Ginji, I said that I didn't need anything."

"Liar. You know you want some."

"…haha, you can read me like an open book, huh Ginji? Alright, let's eat."

* * *

"Hey, that wasn't bad for a load of pre-cooked gas-station food." Ban commented, when they finished their meager portions.

"Hey are you gonna eat tha-" Ginji began, reaching over towards Ban's side of the coffee table.

"Hands off, Ginji," Ban said, snatching the remains of his dinner.

The two continued through their usual routine, and five or so minutes later, Ban had finally eaten his dinner, and Ginji lay bruised on the floor.

"Go take a shower Ginji, you need it. I refuse to have to sleep next to you in a bed in your hygienic state." Ban said, standing up and stepping over Ginji, heading towards the entrance to the hotel room.

"Alright, alright, but, where are you going?" Ginji asked, as he started towards the bathroom.

"I'm gonna fix this door, we can't risk losing anything else we got, right?"

"Good idea," Ginji replied, before closing the bathroom door.

* * *

The Get Backers laid asleep in their sad excuse for a room, lights were off, and everything was completely silent with the exception of light, rhythmic breathing. The old, decrepit couch unfolded into a bed, and although it was stiff, and uncomfortable, the recoverers had to admit that it felt nice to sleep in a bed again, if only for a night. Whether it was the fact that he was uncomfortable in body, or in mind, Ban soon became restless. Sitting up, and removing the covers, he sat on the side of the thin bed, resting his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. Ban tried to pull himself out of his groggy state, so he could think through his troubles a bit more clearly.

"_What the hell is wrong with me?_" He had been hiding his feeling not only from Ginji, but himself as well. "_I…just don't know anymore…_" Ban sat flustered with himself, in the dark room with his partner lying a mere two feet away, fast asleep. "_Ban Mido doesn't show weakness like this._" Ban continued conversing to himself. "_I can't care…I can't…love…not for real._" Ban chuckled, and laid back down in the bed, "_I'm nothing but a cold, heartless, bastard_."

* * *

The rays from the morning sun cast its light into the room, shining through the cracks where Ban had missed with the duct tape on their busted door. Birds, whatever birds big cities usually had, chirped outside along the nearby telephone wires, and the hum of the morning rush hour traffic began to fill the background. Ginji woke, in his typical bleary state, and sat up in bed rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning, Ban-chan" Ginji yawned, "It's time to wake up."

"…"

"Ban-chan, you can't sleep in this morning," Ginji moaned, reaching over towards Ban, "We have to go pick up the car from the…huh? Ban-chan?" Ginji sat up; more alert, realizing that he had been talking to thin air since he woke up. "_He's probably in the shower…wait, he had one last night. Maybe he went to buy breakfast…but, we got no more money._" Ginji got out of bed, slapped his shoes on, and moved towards the door of the room.

"What's this?" Ginji asked aloud, reaching for a piece of paper that was taped to the door.

_----------------------_

_Ginji, -_

_I had some things I need to do._

_I'll be back eventually, go to the café without me._

_Later,_

_Ban_

_----------------------

* * *

_

_A/N: I hope you liked it's ultra-shortness (not). I usually hope that the chapter after a short one will be much longer, but I can't promise anything. Thanks for reading. -Saberae_


	7. Chapter 7

**What I Want**

**Chapter 7**

Tomorrow was the official three-year anniversary of the Get Backers. It was on that day, three years ago, that Ban Mido and Ginji Amano's paths had crossed, and both of their lives changed forever. The weather forecast predicted a week that was nothing but sunshine, and blue skies as far as the eye could see. But, they could be wrong.

Ginji shambled into the Honky Tonk, wearing a blank expression as he stared at the floor in front of him when he shuffled towards his seat at the counter.

"Good Morning Mr. Ginji!" Natsumi sung happily, as she pranced from the kitchen in back. "Huh? Where's Mr. Ban?" Paul lowered his newspaper, he knew that the entrance had been unusually...quiet…and…peaceful.

"I don't know," Ginji replied.

"Hmm? That's strange," Paul added, "You guys are like two peas in a pod, it's hard to imagine you two not knowing where the other was."

"He said he had some errands to deal with," Ginji replied without much enthusiasm. The former Lightning Emperor felt like he had lost half of himself when Ban wasn't there.

"Errands, huh?" Paul stated, halfway to himself as he raised his newspaper again.

"Well, do you want something to eat in the meantime, Mr. Ginji?" Natsumi asked, blissfully.

* * *

Ban stood in front of the closed door, staring at the doorbell so intently, he had probably already used the Jagan at least twice on it (well, not really). It was the door to Himiko's apartment. She had money, plenty of money, enough money to pick and chose between jobs. She had enough money to buy food when she was hungry, enough money to have a vacation now and again, and even enough money to own her own apartment. Oh, Ban was jealous alright, but, he wouldn't let Himiko know that.

The recoverer couldn't bring himself to ring the doorbell. He had come to borrow money, and he knew that she would lend him some, but not without poking fun at him and making him feel miserable before he left. Ban was so entirely lost in his own thoughts, that he didn't even notice the sounds of footsteps approaching the door from inside the room. The door whipped open, and Ban soon found himself on the floor.

"What the?" Ban managed to utter out.

"Ow…what the hell are you doing standing in front of my door like that, Ban!?" Himiko shouted at him from their entanglement on the floor.

"Well, this wouldn't have happened if you actually kept your eyes opened when you walked!" Ban retorted, pushing Himiko off of him, and standing up.

"Oh please," she replied sarcastically, "What do you want now?" Ban froze, he had forgotten about his small ordeal.

"I need to borrowsomemoney," Ban murmured, not making eye contact.

"You need to what?" Himiko asked, leaning her ear closer to Ban.

"Money, can I borrow some," Ban sputtered.

"Haha, oh Ban, you're always tight on cash, huh?" Himiko laughed.

"Ya, ya, whatever," Ban muttered.

"Alright, come in, how much do you need?" Himiko sighed, stepping out of the entrance, and motioning for Ban to enter. Surprised at how smoothly everything was running, Ban stepped into the well-groomed apartment.

* * *

The jingle of the door opening sounded, breaking the awkward silence between

the three in the Honky Tonk. A young man stepped in, with long brown hair, tied up in it's usual fashion. He approached the silent Ginji, and sat beside him.

"Good Morning Mr. Ginji," Kazuki greeted, smiling.

"Oh, hey Kazu!" Ginji replied, perking up a bit, "It's been a while, huh?"

"Yes, I suppose it has," Kazuki contemplated, "How have things been going with you and Ban?"

"I don't know," Ginji sighed.

"What? Well, that's certainly not like you." Kazuki said, as he took a cup of tea that was set in front of him. "Thank you," he gratefully said to Paul.

"Ban supposedly had some errands to take care of, and left Ginji here," Paul intervened. "It's not often he would do that, but, it's not completely out of the ordinary," he assured.

"Well, in any case," Kazuki began, "I came here on behalf of Hevn."

"Miss Hevn?" Ginji asked, looking Kazuki in the eye, "Did something happen?"

"No, nothing bad happened, if that's what you're thinking," Kazuki guaranteed. "I just have some news about a certain job she promised to you."

"Oh really? That's great! When can we start?" Ginji questioned eagerly.

"About that…the assignment was canceled," Kazuki stated, "It seems the client found whatever they were searching for, and no longer had any need for a recovery service."

"Aw, you've got to be kidding me," Ginji moaned. "No car, no place to sleep, no food, no nothing. We _need_ a job."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ginji." Kazuki replied, finishing his tea. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, especially to one of my closest friends."

"Oh, Kazu," Ginji smiled.

"Well, I need to go and meet up with Juubei, if I'm late, who knows what he'd do." Kazuki sighed, thinking about his best friend. "I'll see you later, Mr. Ginji."

"Alright, see ya Kazuki!" Ginji waved, as his friend left the café.

"Talk about bad luck, huh?" Paul began.

"Ya, I know. Ban's gonna have a cow when he here's about this one." Ginji sighed, placing his head on the counter.

* * *

Ban closed the door behind him. That had to be the worst 10 minutes of his life, but, he got money, and that's all that mattered. He was able to borrow $5000! Five frikin' thousand dollars! Now he could finally see a decent meal in his near future, it was amazing! Ban, shoving the memory of his encounter with Himiko to the back of his brain, brought about his great grin of victory, and strolled out of the apartment building towards the mechanic where his car awaited his return.

Everything was going smoothly, just like he planned. He'd get the money, get the car, get the Ginji, and get the job, to get more money! It was the perfect plan, fool-proof! Ban laughed aloud, smitten with himself. After walking down several long, busy, crowded, streets, the recoverer finally came upon the mechanic that he entrusted his beautiful, loving, car to. Oh how he couldn't wait to sit in those fine leather seats, and grip onto that beautifully-crafted steering wheel.

"Hey, baldy!" Ban called out cheerfully, "I'm here for my car!" Ban stepped into the shop, noticing the office was empty, he decided to head back to where his car was waiting. "Baldy? You back here?" Ban continued.

"Ah, Mr. Mido, there you are." The stout mechanic replied, moving to greet Ban, "You're a little late, I told you to pick up the car half an hour ago…or else." A treacherous gleam appeared in the mechanic's eye.

"W-what did you do to my car?" Ban questioned, panic coming over him as he violently turned about glancing every which way.

"Hahaha," the man's laugh bellowed, "Don't worry, I didn't do anything to your car. You're friend came and picked it up for you. He wanted to make sure it was picked up on time."

"My…friend?" Ban stopped, concerned.

"Ya, he was about yea high, with blonde spiky hair. He had a certain…glow about him, ya know?" the mechanic replied, recalling the memory.

"G-Ginji!?" Ban's eyes were as wide as saucers, and he began to tremble a bit. "Ginji took, Ginji…drove _my car_!?" Before the mechanic could get another word in, Ban was out the shop, and sprinting for his car's life down the sidewalk, leaping over people left and right.

"_Ginji…GINJI!_" Ban's mind exploded, "_What the hell were you thinking, you can't even ride a bike, let alone DRIVE a CAR!!!_" As he dashed around a corner, he slammed into the back of a large crowd of people.

"What the?" Ban growled, pulling himself up off the ground, "Why are all of these people..." Ban glanced over the crowd, catching sight of a large stream of water jutting up into the air several yards away. The crowd seemed to have formed a ring around whatever it was near this fountain, so Ban had no choice but to force his way through the tightly packed group. After shoving people out of the way, crawling between legs, ducking under arms, and climbing over strollers, he could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"Finally," Ban gasped, taking in some fresh air as he emerged on the inside of the circle. "Now, wha-" Ban couldn't believe it. His car was basically wrapped around the gushing hydrant, damaged…again…money. He couldn't help himself.

"GINJI!!!" with this, Ginji spun around from his sullen state near the car.

"Oh, B-Ban-chan. Um, I can explain," Ginji let out a nervous laugh.

"Ginji…" Ban began, trying to keep his composure.

"Yes, Ban-chan?" the sullen recoverer asked, swallowing hard.

"Why the heck did you take the car, and _drive_ it…and…crash it…" Ban questioned, his voice strained.

"I'm sorry Ban-chan! I wanted to get it so that we wouldn't miss the appointed time, and then you wouldn't have to worry about it!" Ginji stammered, "Don't worry, the damages aren't that bad. I found the brake right before I hit the fire hydrant, so, it could've been worse." Ginji smiled slightly, trying to calm his partner down before it was too late.

"You mean you didn't know where the brake was when you started driving it to begin with!?" Ban growled, glaring daggers.

"Now, now Ban, can we finish this later, everyone's watching us…" Ginji asked, lowering his voice. With this, Ban realized that the enormous crowd still remained standing, and staring, at the two of them.

"Alright, well, it looks like it's still drivable…I hope," Ban sighed, considering that he might have over-reacted earlier. "Alright people, show's over," Ban shouted, trying to clear the crowd away so he could get his car back on the road. After a few minutes, the crowd finally began breaking apart, and people went on their way.

"Alright Ginji," Ban sighed, "You're gonna need to give it a jump-start, you up for it?"

"You can count on me," Ginji smiled, placing his palms on the car engine. His body began to glow slightly, and a few sparks appeared here and there around his clothes. Soon, after a few attempts, the car roared to life once again. "Everything look good up there?" Ginji called up to where Ban was sitting in the driver's seat.

"Ya, it's all good, so hurry up and get yourself in here," Ban shouted back, and with that, Ginji clambered on into the passenger seat, and the recoverers roared off towards the Honky Tonk.

* * *

The sound of grinding metal and mechanical sputters filled the air in and around the small café.

"What is that awful noise?" Hevn questioned, flinching at the scraping clatter that arose outside of the Honky Tonk.

"I have a good guess," Paul replied, not even looking up from his business to see who was approaching. With this, Ban and Ginji pulled up alongside the Honky Tonk. The car looked great, the paint job was beautifully re-done, the tires where brand new, and all the chrome was polished up so well, its reflection rivaled that of a classy mirror; however, there was the small problem with the fact that the front of the car had an imprint of a fire hydrant indented into it.

"Oh no…" Hevn commented to herself.

"We'll be hearing about this one for a while," Paul added.

"Look, its Ban and Ginji! They're back," Natsumi cried with glee, moving out to greet them.

Ban stepped out the car, and walked around to take a better look at the newly acquired damages. Ginji walked to the front of the car as well, though, he wasn't to thrilled with taking a look at what he had done.

"Ban-chan, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that, I don't know what came over me." Ginji expressed. Ban sighed. "I'll pay for it, I'll get a job and pay-"

"Ginji." Ban interrupted.

"Yes?"

"…What have I told you about part-time jobs?"

"You said that we can't have them because we're a recovery service…and…that we've got our pride to keep intact…" Ginji replied, recalling all the times that he proposed the idea of looking for _other_ work.

"Exactly. We're the Get Backers, and the Get Backer's don't take on part-time jobs," Ban concluded, closing his eyes, and turning towards the Honky Tonk. "And besides, Hevn still has to give us that job; we'll have plenty of money in no time at all."

"Um, Ban-chan, about that…" Ginji trailed off, giving up on forewarning his friend of the bad news.

* * *

"WWHHAAAAAAAAAAAT!?" Ban shouted, bending, and breaking his fork in half. "What did, why would, how could…ARGH!" Ban cried, flustered.

"Give it a rest Ban, I expected you to be a little more professional about this. The client canceled, that's that. It's not like I went off and gave the assignment to Shido." Hevn sighed, taking a sip of her coffee. Ban all but broke the countertop when he slammed his forehead onto it in anger.

"Don't worry Ban-chan; another job is sure to be waiting just around the corner for us." Ginji tried to console. When the steaming Ban gave no response, Ginji sighed, and turned his attention to Natsumi.

"So Natsumi, how's your job been working out for you?"

"Oh, it's been going well. It's amazing, I have so much extra money, I don't know what to do with all of it." She replied, smiling.

"Wow, that's great Natsumi," Ginji replied, happy for his friend, though a little pained inside at the thought of having no money himself.

"Well, I'll see all of you later," Hevn began, collecting her purse, and making her move towards the door. "I'll try and get you two a job as soon as I can, alright?"

"Really? Thanks Miss Hevn," Ginji smiled, as she left the café.

"Great, now Hevn pities us …" Ban moaned from his mourning state.

"Don't forget me too," Natsumi chimed in.

"Ugh…" Ban groaned.

"You two have been worst off before, just be happy that you aren't living in the gutter," Paul pointed out.

"That's right, Ban-chan. Remember when the car got towed, and we were sleeping under that overpass…" Ginji grinned, reminiscing.

"Whatever," Ban murmured, sitting up on his stool, finishing the small scraps of food that were left on his plate.

"How about I treat you two to dinner?" Natsumi suggested happily.

"Wow, Natsumi, would you really do that, hey Ban-" Ginji began.

"I'm not that hungry," Ban replied, standing up and heading towards the door. "You go ahead and eat without me."

"Where are you going, Ban-chan?" Ginji questioned.

"I'm goin' for a walk, I'll be back in a bit," Ban replied, stepping out the door without another word.

* * *

_A/N: This chapter was much longer, and I hope you guys enjoyed it. Don't worry, I'm getting to…wherever I'm going, with the plot I mean. I'm making this up as I go along, so I'm not really sure how to turn at some points. Well, thanks for reading! -Saberae_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Well, this is finally the chapter that gets the plot going…I guess, hope you enjoy! -Saberae.

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 8**

The sun was setting behind the high-rising skyscrapers that littered the city, and cast a dark orange glow over the urban area. The recoverer wandered aimlessly down the sidewalk, hands in pockets, looking at nothing in particular, with a cigarette hanging loosely from his lips. Tomorrow would be the third anniversary of the Get Backers. For the past two years, the recoverers had always had enough money to throw some sort of party at the Honky Tonk. The get-togethers were great, everyone showed up for whatever reason, including the Limitless Fortress crew, Hevn, Himiko, the few tagalongs like Natsumi, and numerous others. The parties always lasted late into the night, and Paul always gave up on trying to keep his café un-scathed after the first two hours, it just wasn't worth it. Once the younger acquaintances took their leave, as well as a few of the older ones, they always broke into the whiskey, sake; you name it, and wasted the rest of the night away.

Those were good times, of course, a few arguments always emerged, but they were solved within an hour or so. This year, unfortunately, there just wasn't any money for something like that. Although Ban never liked to admit it, he looked forward to the anniversary party each year. It was fun; he could mess with everybody in the convenience of his own…er…home? He knew Ginji loved the gatherings as well, especially the fact that Kazuki, Juubei, Shido, and Emishi all came to join in the festivities. It's a shame that it wouldn't work out for them this year.

Ban's cigarette lost its vigor, and he spat it on the ground, grinding it to dust with his foot, it had been his last one. He knew he wasn't going to be a happy man for the next few days.

"_I'm sorry, Ginji. Looks like we won't be having one this year,_" Ban sighed. He had wandered into the nearby park and soon found himself sitting on a bench. He sat there for several minutes, thinking about their current predicament, wondering how long it'd last this time. Adjusting himself, he reached into his back pocket, and pulled out his rather thin wallet, opening it up. He had $2. That was it, nothing more. There wasn't a penny to be found on his, or Ginji's person, on the floor of his beloved car, anywhere. "_It seems I can't take care you of like I thought I could, Ginji,_" Ban smirked, "_let alone myself, for that matter_."

* * *

Ginji sat in the corner of the booth by the back window of the café, staring blankly out of it. Kazuki, Emishi, and Shido had all meandered into the café at various times since Ban had left, and were sitting at the counter conversing, with the occasional glance towards their former leader.

"I know he said 'no', and still says 'no', but what's to say he'll keep saying 'no'?" Emishi said to the two of the former Four Kings.

"Ginji is happy where he is, we've gone over this countless times, Emishi. I doubt it will be any different this time." Kazuki replied, his tone low.

"I think Kazuki is right," Shido agreed, "Even if he were to go, there'd still be the trouble of re-building the Volts like that.

"All the old crowd would be back in no time though, especially if the Lightning Emperor were to return," Emishi assured, "Think about it, it'd be just like old times."

"The Age of Hell," Kazuki stated, mostly to himself, "That had was a terrible time, but, at the same time…"

"It was some of the greatest moments of our lives," Shido finished.

The three former Volts members glanced over at the former Lightning Emperor. Their leader seemed to of had lost some of his spark in the last month or so. There was less life to him and he was a bit more somber than usual, probably because a bit Ban Mido had rubbed off on him. The fact that the Get Backer's hadn't exactly eaten normal portions for the past two or three weeks probably also played a role; they each had to of lost a good 10 lbs each.

"I can't take this much longer," Emishi cried, suddenly standing from his seat. "He has to come back with us, he'll die if-"

"Okay, now you're just over-reacting Emishi," Shido interrupted, folding his arms.

"Ya, I know. But still, I can't stand seeing our Emperor in this state!"

"I have to agree," Kazuki began, "The way he is now; I'd imagine it'd be hard for him to be happy."

"Exactly," Emishi said, trying to make his point, "That's why we need to ask him _now_!"

Kazuki and Shido both sighed at this remark. Even though the two of them didn't hang out at the Limitless Fortress all that much nowadays, they certainly would return if Ginji went back, no doubt about it. Though, they cared about Ginji, and although they tried to force him to return in the past, they truly wished only for his happiness. The two former Kings glanced at each other, then over at Ginji, then back at each other.

"Should we?" Shido asked.

"Well, he would answer truthfully, no doubt, so if he says no, then everything will be fine," replied Kazuki.

"And if he says yes?"

"I guess we'll just have to find out."

Ginji had turned his gaze from the window and directed it towards his twiddling thumbs. Ban hadn't been himself recently, and Ginji knew something was up but he was reluctant to ask. Ban would tell him that everything was fine and to leave him alone, then they would argue, Ban would get mad, Ginji sad, everything would turn out bad, and nothing good would've came from the conversation.

While Ginji was sitting in his contemplative state, Kazuki, Shido, and Emishi all made there way to the booth. Emishi sat next to Ginji, while Kazuki and Shido sat across from them.

"Oh, hey Emishi, Shido, Kazu," Ginji greeted with a smile. "You guys need something?"

"Mr. Ginji," Kazuki began, "we're worried about you."

"Huh?" Ginji raised an eyebrow

"These conditions that you're living under just aren't suitable for you, for any human. You have no food, little water, no place to sleep, and no money." Shido added.

"That's why we wanted to ask you-" Emishi started.

"I'm not going back," Ginji said, without hesitation.

"But Lightning Emperor," Emishi pried, "You'll have food, shelter, and of course we'll all be there for you."

"No," Ginji sighed, "I've told you guys, I'm with the Get Backer's now, and I'm not coming back."

"What if you came back temporarily?" Kazuki suggested. Ginji perked up slightly. "You could come back with us, to the Limitless Fortress, until your recovery service is back on track again. That way, you'll have all the necessities, and you can leave when you want." Ginji furrowed his brow, thinking intently.

"_If I were to go back with them, to the Limitless Fortress, I might be able to find a recovery job for the two of us. Not only that, if I weren't here, Ban could use the little money we have left and he wouldn't have to worry about me,_" Ginji pondered, "_So, if I were gone, all the money would be used for one person, Ban would be happy, I would be happy, and when we get more money, we'll get back together_." Ginji hoped that this would work out, and nodded in agreement to himself. "_Would Ban disapprove of his leaving?_" the Lightning Emperor wasn't sure. "I can't, I can't leave Ban alone in this situation," Ginji concluded aloud.

"Hey, Ban," Paul greeted, as Ban entered the Honky Tonk.

"Mm," Ban replied, sitting at the counter, "Coffee…"

"Alright…" Paul answered, not feeling like questioning the man's strange behavior.

Kazuki, Shido, and Emishi had all watched Ban intently since he stepped through the threshold. They knew that Ban was the only thing preventing Ginji from returning.

* * *

A few hours had passed, the former Volts' members had left, and the Get Backer's were the only remaining costumers in the Honky Tonk. Ginji remained in his booth in the corner, and Ban on his stool at the counter. Both were silent.

Ginji had been thinking about what his friends asked him to do ever since they left. Should he ask Ban, should he forget about it, should he ask Ban to come with him?

"_Ban wouldn't be happy in the Limitless Fortress,_" Ginji concluded with a sigh. His stomach growled, he needed food, and he needed it bad, with this, he sprawled his upper half over the table and moaned.

Ban had noticed his partner's indirect complaints, and it was a shame that he could do nothing about it. Ban looked down at his trusty _empty_ mug.

"_That was probably my last cup of coffee before I die,_" He decided, half joking, half serious. "_Ginji's probably gonna die too…probably of starvation, I'll just die of…insanity or somethin'_."

"I swear if you two stay like this, you'll probably die where you are, then I'll never be able to clean this place of the smell," Paul said, breaking the silence.

"Ban-chan," Ginji called.

"Hmm?"

"I'm hungry."

"I know."

"Do we got _any_ money?"

"Nope."

"Are you sure?"

"Yep."

"Can we borrow some?"

"No."

"I think I'm gonna die."

"Same..."

"I'm gonna shrivel up, and blow away…"

"I'm going to go pick up the car," Ban murmured, standing up, and meandering towards the door.

"I'll come with you," Ginji added in, standing up as well.

"No, I'll go. You can stay here."

"But I _want_ to come," Ginji insisted.

"Ginji, you need to save your energy," Ban replied, opening the door.

"What about you, you need to too."

Ban closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Fine, Ginji."

Ginji moved to the door, following his partner outside.

"Ban is something wrong?"

"…"

"Ban-chan."

"Yes."

Ginji was a bit startled by this answer, he usually got the 'no, I'm fine' speech.

"Well, want to talk about it?"

"Not really, not now at least," Ban returned.

"But-" Ginji started.

"Alright, Ginji, look," Ban stopped walking. "We have no money. If we're lucky, the car is ready and we can sleep in there for a day or two, then gas will run out, and it'll probably get towed again. Of course, we won't have the money to get it back. Then we have no food, no food means no energy. So, even if we do get a job, we won't have a car to travel in, and we won't be able to fight, or run, or walk for that matter. We're in a serious bind here, don't you get it?"

"We'll get through it, Ban-chan, we-"

"No Ginji, I don't think we will. We're in debt to nearly everyone we know, and unless the money fairy flies down from the sky right now, and gives us an extremely large sum of cash, I have a feeling that we won't be getting out of this any time soon." Ban explained, his voice tense and harsh.

"Well, that's okay," Ginji began "Because, we have each other-"

"Ya, we have each other to drag the other one down. Ginji, you don't understand." Ban rubbed at his temples. "We just can't afford two people on our income!"

"But Ban, that makes no sense…"

Ban knew that made no sense, how was he supposed to word this. Ban had overheard the conversation his partner had had with the former Volts members in the café earlier that evening. He knew they were right, Ginji would be better off with them in the Limitless Fortress, but Ginji had denied them, because of him. The Get Backer's had always been tight on cash, but they hadn't ever gone this far, and Ban knew this was serious, more serious than Ginji realized. Unless they were to live off of soup kitchens, and charity items, they would probably end up in critical condition, and they had _no_ money for hospital bills.

"Ginji," Ban began. Ban cared too much about his friend, his partner, his…he tripped on the thought. He cared too much about Ginji to just let this happen; he knew they wouldn't die, but to see his friend in this condition, he couldn't take it. "Ginji," Ban repeated, "You need to go back…"

"What?" Ginji asked, confused.

"You need to go back to the Limitless Fortress," Ban raised his voice slightly.

"Ban-chan, you know I couldn't leave you to deal with this on your own," Ginji smiled.

"No, you're going, whether you like it or not," Ban coerced.

"Ban-chan, stop it, I'm not going back, we're a team remember?"

"We _were _a team, I'm sick of you feeling sorry for me!"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I'm sick and tired of this, and I want you out of my hair!" Ban yelled, taking on a brisk pace down the sidewalk.

"Ban-chan," Ginji called, running up alongside his partner, "I'm not going, we're partners."

"Ginji, I'm warning you, if you don't get out of my sight this instant, I swear." Ban growled, keeping his gaze straight ahead.

"Why are you acting like this all of the sudden, I told you, I'm not leaving-" Ban had suddenly reached around with his right hand, grabbing Ginji by the shirt, and holding him against the brick wall of a nearby building.

"I said, to get the hell out of my sight," Ban glared, his piercing eyes unwavering, "I never want to see your sorry face again, understand!?" He threw Ginji to the side with enough force to prove that he was in fact serious.

"No, Ban-chan, I don't understand, I DON'T!!" Ginji aimed his hand for his partner, and let out a crackling wave of glowing electricity, though, not enough to hurt him too badly, just to get his attention. Ban stopped, and remained with his back turned. Ginji pulled himself up to his feet. He and Ban had arguments in the past that were very similar to this one, after going at it for a bit, something would usually come up, or one would get knocked out. Then everything was fine afterwards, give or take a few details.

Ban stood there, still, not saying a word. Ginji got into position, ready for an attack from his friend, and they were still. Minutes passed, this was getting ridiculous.

"Ban-chan," Ginji relaxed a little, trying to get a reply out of his partner, and he did. Ban whipped his head around, his sunglasses were off, and Ginji knew what had happened, but unfortunately he was powerless to stop it.

_The Jagan._

* * *

_A/N: I don't know! I'm sorry! Don't talk to me! I…argh, I hope this didn't turn into a complete disaster. This was hard for me, but, I liked where it was going, I'm just not sure if I got it out right. Well, thanks for reading it… -Saberae_


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Here's a recovery chapter…in a way. I'm glad you guys liked that last chapter; it encouraged me to keep writing this. –Saberae_

* * *

**What I Want**

**Chapter 9**

Ban's eyes flickered open, and blinked a few times to clear his blurry vision.

"_What the? Where am I?_" Ban moved slightly, finding himself lying on something cold, hard, and extremely uncomfortable. "_The…sidewalk? Ugh, my head…_" He pushed himself up into a sitting position, and tried to get his bearings. Across the street was the mechanic where his car was at, that was where he was heading last night, er…early this morning, and… "_Ginji…_" Ban dismissed the thought, hiding any emotions that were associated. "I must have passed out from having near nothing to eat these past few days…and probably," Ban became very grave at that moment. "…because I used the Jagan…on Ginji."

That hadn't been his normal Jagan either; an average one could faze most people, but not Ginji. Ginji had experienced the Jagan before, but nothing compared to the one that he had let lose on him a few hours earlier. That one…Ginji would never forget.

Ban shook his head slightly, trying to lose the picture in his mind. Glancing up and down the road in front of him, he crossed it, making his way for the mechanic.

* * *

Ginji woke up with a start; he was on a cold, grey, sidewalk. "_What am I doing-_" Ginji's eyes shot open, "_Oh no, Ban-chan!_" Ginji stood from his position. Suddenly, images flashed through his mind. He placed his hand against the brick wall beside him for support, his eyes widened and his breathing became ragged. "Did Ban-chan…the Jagan…or was this…real…" Ginji's body was coated in a thin layer of perspiration as he constantly thought of the unwavering images he had seen. He glanced down the sidewalk; Ban wasn't there, Ban wasn't anywhere. Ban had left him. "Ban-chan…"

Ginji tried to erase the thoughts that constantly hammered at the inside of his head; he just couldn't stop thinking of what had happened. He turned around, and made his way back to the Honky Tonk.

* * *

Ban pulled out of the shop, flipping on his turn signals instinctively to the right, towards the Honky Tonk. After a few moments, he realized what he was doing, and quickly flipped the signals to the left. He couldn't go back to the Honky Tonk, not anytime soon in any case, _he_ would be there, and after what had just happened there's no way he'd want to see Ginji.

Ban pulled out onto one of the main roads, and made his way towards the suburbs, he needed to talk to Himiko again…about money…again. Ban had used the cash that Himiko leant him to repair the damages that Ginji had so kindly induced. Ban sighed.

"Ginji, how is it that even when you're gone, and I'll never see you again, that you manage to cost me so much money!" Ban growled harshly to himself. After a good twenty minutes of traffic, Ban finally pulled up to a row of apartment buildings. They weren't the ritzy type at all, but, they weren't half bad either. After parking his car in the spot furthest from all the others (he wanted to make sure that _no one _was going to back into his car) , he checked everywhere for any signs expressing violations of parking, behind the bushes, under the car, on the power lines. There was none, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief. Following this miniature escapade, Ban made his way into the apartment building, and upon entering, began the trek up the flight of stairs to the second floor. He approached the door and let out a breath of exhaustion, mental exhaustion.

"Himiko!" Ban called out, rapping his knuckles against the door. "Open up!"

Footsteps were heard clicking against the tile floor of the kitchen, and padding along the carpeted hallway that led to the door.

"Alright," Himiko asked, opening the door, "What is it this time, Ban?" she certainly wasn't thrilled to see him again, and her expression was that of 'leave me alone, or else'.

"Himiko, I need some-"

"No," she said, closing the door.

"Some assistance," Ban finished, holding the door open.

"Does it have to do with money?"

"No." he replied, though, Himiko wasn't as trusting as he had hoped, and he gaze was enough to inform him of that. "Alright, ya, ya, it has money involved with it…" Ban corrected himself.

"No," the door began closing again.

"Himiko!" Ban pushed the door open again. "Just hear me out, alright?" Ban closed his eyes, "The Get Backers…are gone."

* * *

"You did what!?" Himiko gaped, shocked at what she heard. "You used a Jagan that powerful on Ginji!? I _thought_ you two were friends."

"Not anymore. I'm sick of him; all he ever did was complain and wreck my car." Ban explained, leaning back on the couch.

"But…"

"Himiko, no. It's over; the Get Backer's are dead and gone, got it? I never want to see his sorry face again, understood?"

Himiko was shocked. She knew Ban was a cold-hearted bastard, a murderer that was chilled to the bone and a good-for-nothing creep, but…there was always something about Ban that was different when he was with Ginji. Ban opened up more to Ginji than anyone else, more than to her, more than to her brother even. She sighed, slouching in the chair she sat in, trying to figure out what could have possibly happened to have driven these two apart. She shook her head, what did she care? Those two were always in her way, and always butting into her business, thank goodness the Get Backers were no more. But…

"So Himiko, let's get down to business. I heard that you know the landlord well, and I was hoping that-"

"That I could arrange for you to get an apartment here, right?"

"You're as sharp as ever, Himiko," Ban grinned, in his own nonchalant way.

"It costs money you know," Himiko pointed out.

"Obviously," Ban retorted. "Once I get a recovery job, I'll be set for months, no problem."

"Well, as long as all I have to do is talk to the guy, sure, why not?" Himiko agreed.

"Great! Thanks Himiko, I'll be back tomorrow then," Ban replied elatedly, standing up, and making his way for the door. "Oh, and I'd like the cheapest one you can get." He added in, right before closing the door behind him.

It had been so long since he had an actual place to stay, with a shower, and maybe even one of those tiny kitchens these places always came with. He made his way down the stairs and out to his car in triumph.

* * *

"Good Morning, Ginji!" Natsumi greeted, in her usual joyous self. "Where's Ban?"

Ginji's facial expression was enough to stop her questions. He slowly walked in the direction of the counter, and looked up slowly, hoping, pleading, that Ban was sitting there, and that everything that had happened was all just a silly dream he had thought up. He wasn't there. The single recoverer glanced around the café at the empty booths…he wasn't there either.

"Ban-chan…" Ginji murmured woefully as he shuffled towards his empty booth in the corner, where he sat, and laid his head down silently, looking out the window.

"Master, do you know what's going on?" Natsumi asked, in a hushed voice.

"No…" Paul replied, deep in thought. The door jingled.

"Good Morning everyone" Hevn sounded, rushing into the Honky Tonk. "Ban, Gin, I got great news, I just finished speaking to a client of mine, and this job…you'll flip at it when you hear how much it's paying!" She tossed her things onto the counter and sat down. "Tea, Paul…thank you." She said, taking a sip of the steaming liquid, sighing in comfort. "Alright, so you want to here the…details? Hey Gin, where's Ban?"

Ginji remained at the booth. He had turned his gaze towards Hevn when she entered, but now only stared at her blankly.

"Gin?" Hevn asked, looking worriedly at the disheartened soul that sat at the other side of the café. Paul and Natsumi also looked worriedly upon the recoverer, shooting nervous glances at one another.

"Oh, sorry Hevn, I wasn't paying attention. Did you need something?" Ginji said, snapping back to reality.

"Hmm…" Hevn thought to herself. Something was definitely not right. "Hey Paul, where's Ban?"

"Who knows, haven't seen him," Paul replied with a shrug.

"We closed late last night," Natsumi began, "Ban and Ginji left here around midnight, to head to the mechanic to pick up the car."

"Wow, they're open past midnight?" Hevn asked curiously.

"Yep, it's open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week." Natsumi replied.

"Then what?" Hevn pried.

"Well, they left last night, and then Ginji showed up about half an hour ago in his current state." The two glanced over at the sulking man.

"And you haven't heard from Ban…that's strange. They probably had an argument of some sort," Hevn sighed, "I really wanted to give this job to them too…" She glanced around, usually Ban would leap out of nowhere yelling something about how she had better not go giving this job to that Monkey-Tamer, but, there was nothing. She sighed.

"Well, let's see what we can get out of him, shall we?" Hevn said, standing up, and making her way over to the booth that currently housed Ginji. She slid onto the bench across from the former emperor, and waited for him to say something. He was silent.

"Ahem," Hevn cleared her throat, trying to get Ginji's attention, he stirred a bit, but his gaze remained pasted to the window. Hevn sighed. "Gin…hey Gin…Ginji Amano, will you look at me for goodness sake!" Ginji jerked slightly, and quickly turned his startled gaze towards the woman in front of him.

"I'm sorry, Hevn," Ginji began, sitting up, "I'm not really feeling myself today."

"So it seems," She replied. "Gin, do you know where Ban is?"

"…"

"Gin?"

"…no"

"No? That's strange…did you two have an argument again?"

"Yes…" Ginji replied, staring down at the spotless table in front of him.

"Alright, tell me what happened," Hevn sighed.

* * *

The city had a numerous amount of public parks littered about, some larger than others, some cleaner, and some more crowded. Ban pulled along side a cement wall in the far corner or one of these parks, and stopped the car.

"This seems like a safe enough place to park, at least for tonight. If they want to tow me, they'll have to catch me first." Ban snickered. It was getting late, near 11 o'clock, and the sun had set over five hours ago. "Well, better get some shut-eye before seeing Himiko tomorrow," Ban smiled, undoing his seatbelt, and reclining his seat back. Yawning, he removed his sunglasses and propped his knees against the dashboard around the steering wheel. Today was the day…this was the Get Backer's 3rd anniversary… "_Ginji…_" Ban grimaced, why the hell was he thinking about Ginji…he wasn't supposed to care anymore…he wasn't supposed to…Ginji was gone, gone from his life forever. He couldn't provide for his friend like he should have, he couldn't give Ginji what he needed. Ginji was better off without someone like him. With this lingering thought left in his heavily weighted conscience, Ban soon drifted away into a restless sleep.

* * *

_A/N: Well, that was just the beginning of the aftermath. I hope you all keep reading, and I've extremely grateful for all of your reviews, thank you. -Saberae_


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! I'm SORRY. Well, I got some excuses. One being, I had this chapter written and ready to be posted…then the motherboard on my computer died, and for some reason I lost two folders, and ONLY two folders. But guess what they were. My __**Anime**__ folder and my __**Get Backers**__ folder! So, I lost what I had written, and since I really didn't feel like re-writing it, I took a VERY long break. Sorry. Then I forgot where I was going with the plot, and I had to re-read the last few chapters, and…Bleugh. Sorry again, and I know this chapter is short, but please enjoy. -Saberae_

* * *

**What I Want**

**Chapter 10**

_RIIING RIIING RIIING_

Ban leapt up with a start, smashing his head on the roof of the car, and busting his knee into the steering wheel. It was early, and the sun had hardly even begun to climb over the horizon.

"Shit!" Ban howled, grabbing his bruised knee. "What is that damn ringing from!?" Ban asked himself, and sat there for a second before he realized, "…the phone?" He glanced about for the annoying device in the seat next to him, on the floor, in the backseat, in his pocket, and outside. "Argh! Where the hell did I put that retarded thing!?" The glove compartment continued vibrating. "And why the hell is the glove compartment vibrating!?...oh…" Ban unlatched the compartment, and groped about inside, finally getting hold of the cell phone.

"Hm? I can't believe this thing still has service, I could've sworn I didn't pay those bills." He flipped the phone open, and checked out the caller ID. "…Hevn." Ban's eyes narrowed. "Geeze, Hevn, if you know I want to get away from you people, why use your phone to call me. Retard." He turned the phone off, and chucked it back into the glove compartment, slamming its door shut.

* * *

"Damn it, Ban!" Hevn growled, glaring angrily at her phone. "I know he always has it with him, and it's on too! Why won't that slug pick up!?" 

"Hevn, there's no need to get _that_ worked up over it," Ginji said, trying to calm the enraged woman down a bit.

"NO!" She snapped back, "Ginji, you should be the last person I hear that from, understand. He has no right to be treating you like this." She took a deep breath, "Alright, well, seeing as he won't pick up the phone, does anyone have any ideas of his whereabouts?"

"Well, since they went to pick up the car last night, he could probably be anywhere…unfortunately." Paul informed. Hevn just stared at him.

"Okay, does anyone have a more definitive idea?" the negotiator questioned. Natsumi and Ginji stared blankly at her. "Great…" Hevn sighed, sitting back down on her bar stool.

"What if…" Ginji began shaking, "What if…Ban is really…"

* * *

"It's been nice doing business with you, Mr. Midou," the broad-shouldered, mustached man smiled, shaking Ban's hand firmly.

"Well, Himiko, I'll be going now," The landlord continued, "I have an important meeting to attend to involving one of my other complex's, so, I trust that you can show Mr. Midou to his new apartment?"

"Of course, have a good day Mr. Fujisaki." Himiko replied, closing the door behind him.

"Alright, thanks Himiko, I owe you one….er….okay, more than one, but, you know." Ban grinned, reaching for the keys in Himiko's hand.

"Not so fast," Himiko replied, snatching her hand back, away from Ban. "I want to make sure you understand my conditions.

"Ugh, Himikooo," Ban whined, "Can't we talk about this later, I'm tired, and I haven't slept in a bed in forever!"

"No." She said, glaring daggers.

"Okay, okay…" Ban sighed, finding a chair in her apartment to throw himself into.

"Now listen carefully, Ban." Himiko began, sitting opposite of him, "You got two options. One being, you work as a recoverer, and with your pay, you pay me back."

"That's what I was planning on doing anyway," Ban replied, lighting a cigarette he swiped from the landlord.

"But, if you decide to do that, I want ALL the money I loaned you, plus 5 interest, in one month's time." Himiko replied, smirking.

Ban's mouth dropped open, and his eyes widened, causing his sunglasses to slide down his nose a bit, and his cigarette to fall on the floor.

"One Month! For ALL that cash! There is no way in Hell I could pull that off!" Ban replied in shock, reaching down to pick his cigarette off the wood floor, placing it back in his mouth.

"I know." Himiko said, nonchalantly, leaning back in her chair.

"You know." Ban stared, with narrowed eyes.

"Yes, that's why I said there were two options."

"What's the second one then?"

"You work as a transporter with me on my upcoming assignment." Himiko smiled.

* * *

"I'm bored," Ginji began. 

"Wanna play a game with me?" Natsumi replied, prancing over to his booth.

"Naaa, not now, thanks anyways."

"Wanna go somewhere?" She continued.

"Like where?" Ginji asked, sitting up from his slouched over position.

"I don't know, around? It's better than sitting in here all day, right?" She replied, smiling.

"hmm…" Ginji sighed, contemplating what he should do. He had been sitting here for several hours, and definitely needed to move around some. "Alright, sure, why not?" Ginji said, forcing a smile.

"Who knows, maybe we'll see Mr. Ban while we're out!" Natsumi informed as she skipped towards the door, informing Paul of her break.

"_Yeah…who knows?"_

* * *

_A/N: Alrighty, there's the 10__th__ chapter. Sorry it was short, you'd think it'd have been lengthier since it's been so long since I've last updated this fic. Hope you enjoyed, sorry again for the terrible wait. -Saberae_


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: Okay, let's see if I can get things moving in this Chapter, sorry for the real 'beat around the bush' technique I'm pulling._

_

* * *

_

**What I Want**

**Chapter 11**

"_Room 266…Room 266…_" Ban sauntered down the concrete walkway searching for his apartment. He turned a fifth corner. "What the hell! Building don't have five corners, where is this fricken room!" he lashed out. He had been searching for a good ten minutes now, and his patience was reaching its limits. "I swear, if that sorry old geezer ripped me off, and there is no 266, I'm gonna rip his…oh, here it is." Ban stopped mid-sentence, realizing he was in front of the elusive room.

_ker-CHUNK_

The lock was opened (very loudly), and the door creaked open. Ban slowly moved towards the small opening, and glanced in.

"Creepy…" he murmured, "oh well, works for me!" He pushed the door open all the way only to have a wave of musty air greet him. "Geeze, has anyone ever lived in this dump before, looks like a tomb (and smells like one too)."

Ban reached over to the nearby wall, and began running his hand along the plaster searching for the light switch. After running into a few spider webs, he flipped the switch, and ignited a low light in the center of the room.

The wallpaper was peeling, the ceiling had cracks, the lights flickered, and the door creaked.

"Perfect," Ban proclaimed, taking a few more steps into the dilapidated room. There were three rooms in total. There was the living area of course, and fortunately for the broke recoverer, there was already some furniture included. A couch sat against one wall, with a TV sitting opposite, along with a nearby coffee table. There were two broad windows, though they were covered by some shabby, moth-eaten curtains that looked as if they were at least fifty years old. The kitchen was small, but included the necessities. The bedroom had…a bed, and the bathroom had the usual. It was perfect.

Ban tossed himself onto the couch, and let out a sigh.

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

The sudden banging at the door caused him to leap a good 3 feet into the air.

"Who is it?" Ban called, irritated.

"Who do you think it is?" Himiko called through the door.

"Man, Himiko, what do you want now?" Ban asked, making his way to the front door. "What is it?" he questioned, crossing his arms after opening the rusted door.

"What do you mean 'What is it?' you promised to work with me on my transporting job, remember?" Himiko replied, slightly frustrated.

"What! You mean now? I didn't realize that it'd be this soon!" Ban gaped.

"Well, that's your problem, isn't it?" Himiko replied, crossing her arms, and turning away. "Hurry up, we gotta get going."

"Hmph, whatever," Ban replied, stepping out of the threshold, and closing the door behind him with a growl.

The two walked briskly down the walkway, and into the stairwell. After two flights, they were in the parking lot.

"We're taking your car, by the way." Himiko informed.

"We're taking what-?" Ban asked, glaring at the back of Himiko's head.

"You heard me," she sighed, as she walked to the passenger door. "Don't worry, it's only to get to the meeting place, then we'll take the truck of course."

"Fine," Ban barked, unlocking the doors. The two climbed in, and Ban started the engine. "What is it we're transporting anyways?" He asked curiously.

"bodies." Himiko replied.

* * *

"Natsumi…what…was the point…of that?" Ginji gasped for air, as he tumbled into the Honky Tonk.

"Duh, to look for Mr. Ban," Natsumi smiled, walking comfortably behind the counter to put her apron back on.

"What'd she do to you?" Paul inquired, lowering his newspaper.

"She literally had us walk around all of Shinjuku." Ginji sighed, "It had to of been at least 25 miles, she's insane!" Ginji walked over to a booth, and fell onto the bench, "I'm exhausted."

"I'm back"

"Good afternoon Ms. Hevn, what brings you back here?" Natsumi asked.

"Well, it seems Shido is elsewhere, so now I haven't got anyone to take on this assignment." Hevn sighed, sitting down and tossing her keys on the counter. Ginji shuffled in his seat. "I guess if it comes down to it, I can tell my client that it's just not going to happen."

"I…" Ginji began. Everyone turned to face him. "I could…do it."

"What about-" Hevn began.

"I don't need Ban!" Ginji snapped back. "I can take care of this assignment myself." He turned away from the three.

"Alright then," Hevn began, taking a seat across from the distraught recoverer. "I'll give you the details. This time, I need you to recover an amass of corpses."

* * *

"Bodies! What do you mean, bodies!" Ban asked urgently. He didn't want to get involved with anything that would send him to jail for life.

"Don't worry, I know it sounds messed up, but we're only transporting them for a funeral business." Himiko said, trying to calm the crazed driver.

"A funeral thing, huh?" Ban said, reassuring himself, and easing his grip on the steering wheel.

* * *

"Corpses! What do you mean, corpses!" Ginji questioned nervously.

"These bodies were stolen from a morgue." Hevn continued. "They all had one thing in common, and that was they all died in the past five hours."

"Wow, they're really fresh then, huh?" Ginji asked.

"Yes, and because of this, some of their organs are still usable. So, as you can imagine…that would make for quite a bit of cash."

"Yeah, I understand." Ginji replied.

* * *

After approximately one hour of driving, Ban and Himiko approached the designated warehouse. It was around six o'clock, and the sun would be setting soon.

"Are you sure my car will be okay here?" Ban asked with a very serious look plastered on his face.

"For the last time, it'll be fine, trust me!" Himiko sighed, walking through a doorway into the main room of the warehouse.

"This place just says 'look at me, I have dead bodies here', all over it." Ban joked.

"Here we are," Himiko stated, stopping next to a large semi.

"Hm, please tell me I don't have to ride with the corpses; I'm not big into rotting flesh." Ban said, lighting a cigarette.

"Of course not, my friend," A white-gloved hand made it's way onto Ban's shoulder. Ban tensed up, that voice always sent shivers up his spine, even though he didn't like admitting it.

"Ugh! Akabane!" Ban jumped back away from the man clothed in black. "I knew I smelt something, and it wasn't those dead bodies."

"Now, now, is that the way you greet all your comrades?" Akabane smiled…creepily. Ban whirled around.

"Himiko! Why didn't you tell me HE was going to be here!" Ban asked angrily.

"If I told you, you wouldn't have come," she shrugged.

* * *

"So, you're sure that you want to do this…?" Hevn asked one more time.

"Yes, I'm positive, don't worry about me!" Ginji gave his usual triumphant smile.

"Hmm, alright then…" Hevn sighed, having lost whatever battle she was trying to win.

"Well, I guess that means I'm off, I'll be back eventually," Ginji bade as he scurried out the Honky Tonk's door. He turned right and kept on down the sidewalk, he had quite a ways to go. "You know…now that I think about it, I don't have a car, so…how am I going to…get there…" Ginji stopped, realizing his predicament at last. "If only…if only Ban were still here…" Ginji murmured to himself, "If only…"

* * *

_A/N: D-O-N-E! Well, you know, with this chapter at least. I really have little clue to where this is going…but, that's the fun of it! I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter, I believe it is a bit longer than Ch.10 was, and I know how much you guys love long chapters, haha. Well, thanks for reading up until now, and I hope you guys come with me all the way to the end! (whenever that will be!) -Saberae_


	12. Chapter 12

The rain beat a steady tempo on the window of the semi, obscuring Ban's view of the roadside landscape. Ever since the transport team left their starting point it had been nothing but a steady downpour, despite the earlier prediction of sunshine and candy canes all week long.

"Your mood isn't much better than this weather," Himiko started, breaking the silence.

"Ya, well, who can be in a good mood with that guy," Ban replied, motioning towards the back, where Akabane was, "and a load of corpses right next to you?"

Himiko chuckled, "I suppose so, but you really need to get over it, you _are_ getting paid to move the bodies, as well as to work with Akabane."

"Heh, I know that," Ban retorted, "I'm not so new to the business that I'd let things like those affect my work." Ban turned back to his window. The truth was, it wasn't Akabane and the tankard of dead bodies that was causing his somber mood, it was Ginji.

Ginji had been on his mind since their departure, naturally, due to the long drive and heavy silence in the cab; he had tons of time to think- about Ginji. He felt sick to his stomach ever since he abandoned his comrade on the sidewalk several hours earlier. It had gone against almost everything he stood for. And after he unleashed a Jagan of that nature on him too…

"_It was for the best,_" Ban had been telling himself this time and time again. "_Ginji will be better off without me. He'll live much more fulfilling life in the Limitless Fortress, with people who can support him better than I have ever been able to._" Ban winced a little at the thought of Shido being able to support Ginji with ease. He winced at the thought of being inferior in any way, shape, or form, and he winced at the thought of losing the one he…

"_What am I thinking?_" Ban shook his head, closing his eyes, trying to rid himself of his train of thought. But he couldn't. Ginji meant a lot to him. He was his business partner, his friend, and the one he had grown so close to over the years. Ginji meant so much more, so much more than anyone else. While he may have been right about Ginji not needing him, it seemed that it wasn't true about him needing Ginji. "_Why can't I stop thinking about him?_" Ban continuously questioned himself. He opened his eyes.

"Shit…" Ban hissed under his breath.

* * *

"Dangit, this isn't working," Ginji said, cramming the soaked map back into his pocket. "I thought I would be at the road by now. That's the last time I ever take directions for a shortcut from a hobo."

His mind was heavy, he couldn't stop worrying about Ban. The way his friend had been acting had been strange, and the former Lightning Emperor had very limited ideas as to why. Ginji continued to climb through the foliage; under branches, over logs, through bushes, when he finally emerged on the ever elusive road. He slid down the muddy slope in front of him, landing on the wet asphalt with ease.

"Alright, they should be here any minute now." Ginji said, sitting on a nearby rock, "_All that's left to do is wait_…_alone_."

Unfortunately, Ginji chose to wait where the road made a bend, blocking his view of the road a quarter mile away, and to his surprise, the semi he was after burst into sight.

"Oh, man!" Ginji exclaimed, jumping to his feet.

* * *

"Hey, is there someone on the side of the road over there?" Himiko asked, squinting, trying to see through the rain. "It looks sorta like-"

"Ginji!?" Ban exclaimed, caught by surprise. "_What the hell is he doing here!?_" Ban clenched his fist.

"Should we stop, Ban?" Himiko questioned, noticing how the man was trembling slightly.

"No, we have a job to do." Ban said, regaining his composure. "He's most likely on a recovery assignment…"

"Ban?" Himiko implored.

"Just keep driving Himiko."

* * *

The semi kept a constant speed, and was plowing down the road towards Ginji.

"Alright, I only have one shot at this," Ginji began, placing his hands on the wet road. "All I have to do is send electric currents through the water, heat up the road, and…"

The semi's tires no longer had traction, and began sticking to the road, the rubber was melting, and the truck slowed to a stop.

* * *

"What the hell!?" Himiko shouted, struggling with the steering wheel to maintain course. "What was that, why aren't we moving!?"

"Ginji used his electricity to melt the tires." Ban said calmly, looking straight ahead.

"What? We don't have sixteen spare tires, Ban." Himiko replied, worried about the job.

"Don't worry. The tires are sill usable, at least enough to get you to the checkpoint." Ban replied, turning to face Himiko. "You just need to wait for the road to cool down, which should be soon since it's still raining."

"What about Ginji? He's going to try and take our cargo." Himiko reminded him.

"I'll take care of Ginji." Ban replied, opening his door to the cab.

The rain streaked down his face, drenching him almost immediately. The downpour had yet to let up, and it only added to the melancholy air about Ban as he jumped down from the semi cab to the road. Closing the door, he motioned the go ahead for Himiko to start driving.

"I'll meet up with you later." Ban told Himiko, "I'm sure you can handle things from here." With that, she punched the gas, and accelerated away.

Ban lit a cigarette. It was a nice relief; it calmed him down when he was stressed. He managed to forage a few from his car earlier that day from the glove compartment, unfortunately he was once again on his last. Placing hands in pockets, he turned to face down the road, eying Ginji a hundred yards or so away.

Ginji began to slow his pace, for he had been running to where the truck had stopped. To his surprise, they had realized that they could move sooner than he expected. A figure several yards ahead of him caught his attention through the rain.

"_Is that…?_" Ginji tried to get closer, the rain still obscuring his vision. "B-Ban!?"

* * *

_A/N: Wow, it's been over 2 years since I last wrote. What a LONG time, haha. Well, look , I wrote another chapter, isn't that great!? Maybe I can finish this thing up soon. Sorry for the extremely long wait! - Saberae_


	13. Chapter 13

**What I Want**

**Chapter 13**

Ginji couldn't believe that Ban was here, in the middle of an obscure road, in the pouring rain. The sheets of water refused to subside, and only the moon managed to provide light to the lonely landscape below.

"Ban-chan…" Ginji breathed a sigh of relief, as he walked in the direction of his comrade. "Ban-chan, I've been so worried about you, everyone has! Natsumi dragged me all over the city looking for you today," he smiled as he neared his friend, "Why are you out here?"

"What are you doing here?" Ban demanded, keeping his gaze on the road, rain pouring all around.

"What? Oh, I'm on a recovery assignment. Hevn had it for us, but…you weren't there so I took it on my own." Ginji replied, caught slightly off guard by Ban's abrupt question.

"Go home, Ginji. I told you that the Get Backers were dead and gone." Ban said, cigarette illuminating his face, turning away from the blonde.

"But, Ban!" Ginji began, "You still haven't answered me, what are you doing out here? Are you working with the transport team I'm after?" Ginji furrowed his brow, contemplating the scenario. "Why are you doing all these things? Why are you doing everything you can to go against me…what happened to us, to you? Why don't you want to be with me?"

Ban tensed up. It wasn't that he didn't want to be by Ginji's side. In fact, he really wanted to be with him. He wanted things to be normal again, nothing spectacular, but normal. He wanted to tell his friend that everything would be okay, that their next meal wouldn't be a problem, and that he would always be there for him. But he couldn't. He didn't want to be open with Ginji, but at the same time, he just wanted to apologize for everything.

"Ginji…" Ban began.

"Y-Yes?" Ginji stammered due to the sudden breaking of silence.

"I'm sorry." Ban finished. He tossed his cigarette on the ground, stepping on it to put it out, only to walk away from the one who he desired to be with the most.

"Ban-chan…Ban, BAN!" Ginji shouted, running after the brunette and grabbing onto his shoulder, spinning him around to face him. "That's not going to cut it!" Ginji grabbed Ban by the collar, pulling him close. Ban drew back as best he could, and turned his head so as not to meet Ginji's piercing gaze. "I'm not going back without you, Ban."

"_You should go back with him…_" the thought hammered against Ban's brain. "_You would be much happier… You need him_."

"Damn it, Ginji, get the hell off me!" Ban growled, removing Ginji's grasp from his collar with quite little effort. He didn't know what to do. He knew what he wanted to do, and it was so out of character for him, that he could hardly even fathom the thought himself.

Ginji just stared at Ban, unsure of what to do. He didn't want to fight him, but at the same time, he was so angry at his partner for keeping everything from him, he wanted to unleash an electric wrath upon him like no other. Moving his line of vision to Ban's face, he could see the pain in his friend's eyes. This was rare. Very few times had Ginji ever seen this look on his friend's face, and it seemed to wash away any frustration Ginji had. The moonlight reflected in the brunette's pained eyes, and cast shadows over his face, giving him a mysterious air. The rain had him drenched from head to toe, and his wet hair fell down around his face as well. He looked…confident, yet hurt at the same time. Ban shifted in his position.

"_What am I going to do? I thought I made up my mind about this, so why am I so uncertain?_" Ban fought with himself "_Why do I need him, when he doesn't need me, why can't I just let him go!_" Ginji saw Ban's jaw clench.

"Ban-chan? Ginji whispered, inching closer to the struggling man. "Ban-chan, please tell me what's bothering you. If we talk about it, I'm sure we can figure things out."

Ban backed away. He was in a corner…in a corner in the middle of an open road, and he was certainly not used to this. Normally, he could just fight his way out of tight spots, but he wasn't going to just go and deck Ginji so he could escape.

Ginji could tell Ban was straining to sort his thoughts. This was uncommon for the collected Ban Midou, what on earth could be causing him this much trouble? Ginji knew one thing though, that he hated seeing Ban like this, and he hated being apart from him.

"Ban-Chan," Ginji began, moving quickly towards his sopping wet partner, embracing him, "please don't leave, I need you."

Ban's eyes opened suddenly, and faintly gasped at what Ginji had said.

"_He needs me?_" Ban thought. He angled his gaze towards the man embracing him, confused at what the former emperor had so easily said, three words that he, the great Ban Midou, could never bring himself to say to anyone. No.

"Ya, right." Ban chuckled with an air of cruelty. "You don't need me…" He plucked Ginji's arms off of himself, taking a step back.

Ginji was a bit shocked by this response; it was not quite what he was expecting.

"What are you talking about Ban-chan?" Ginji implored, "Of course I need you!"

How was he able to say these things so easily? Ban couldn't wrap his mind around it, he could hardly even say those things to himself, let alone out loud to…him.

"Why?" Ban muttered.

"Why what?" Ginji replied.

"Why are you doing this? Why are you making it so fucking hard on me!" Ban's voice rose in volume. "I'm trying to help you, I'm trying to do what's best for you, and you are just making it so damn difficult, I don't know what to do anymore!"

Ginji didn't know how he was supposed to respond. He didn't even know what it was he was doing. All he did was tell the person he was closest to that he needed him. Did Ban hate him that much?

"Ban-chan…do you hate me?" Ginji whispered.

The scowl on Ban's face immediately subsided. Was this what it came to? He had gone so far as to make Ginji think that he hated him? He had gone so far to hide his feelings from his friend, that he almost destroyed what little bit of a relationship they had left. Ban straightened his posture, and shook his head in disapproval at himself. Things couldn't get much worse than this.

Ban shuffled through his pockets searching for the cigarettes he managed to find and bring with him. It was a shame, he enjoyed smoking, but nowadays it seemed to be more of a coping mechanism, or rather a stress reliever of sorts. Fortunately, he found one that was still somewhat dry, despite his soaking state, lit it, inhaled, and sighed the smoke out. He turned to his former partner.

"So, you think I hate you?" Ban began, turning, making sure to look Ginji dead in the eye.

"Well, I mean, I was just asking because-" Ginji began, but was cut off.

"Do you think it or not?" Ban's voice had an air of irritation to it.

"I…I don't know! The way you've been acting, the way you've been pushing me away for the past while, I don't know what to think!" Ginji replied, his eyes glancing every which way.

Ban could tell that Ginji was getting upset, more so than he initially was at least. He knew Ginji well, and he knew Ginji would never hurt one of his friends for his own benefit. That's why Ban had to do it for him.

"Go back." Ban said, calmly. "Go back to the Limitless Fortress."

"I'm not going back, I don't want to." Ginji replied, keeping his footing in the argument.

"Then you would rather stay with someone who hates you?" Ban asked the leading question, glancing at Ginji's face for a response.

Ginji wasn't sure how he was supposed to handle this; he glanced down at the shimmering road, watching the raindrops splatter all over the asphalt.

"Is that what you want?" Ginji asked, voice wavering slightly.

Ban winced at this slightly, it wasn't what he wanted, it wasn't anywhere close! But he knew what he had to do, he knew he had to make the decision for the saddened man in front of him.

"Yes…" Ban murmured, turning away abruptly. He couldn't stand this; he had to get away from it. He breathed out some smoke, and after a pause, he began to walk, yet again, away from Ginji.

Ginji wrestled with what Ban just said. It was the exact opposite of what he wanted to hear. But, why would Ban ever reply in the way that he was hoping for. Ban would never change his mind in the middle of an argument, it would probably hurt his pride, or something like that. He was hiding something…and Ginji wanted to know what. Ban wouldn't break up the Get Backers without a good reason, and even though Ginji had screwed up a few things, there's no way Ban would take his anger this far.

"Liar…" Ginji's eyes narrowed, "Liar! Why are you lying to me, Ban!" His voice rose, and it was laced with anger.

Ban stopped in his tracks. He did not expect Ginji to retaliate, normally the blonde accepted Ban's word, but apparently this wasn't going to be so easy. Ban turned around to see Ginji glowing, glaring at him. Sparks ran up and down the former emperor's arms and legs, trailing around his body and through his hair. He was pissed.

"I know you're lying to me," Ginji began, calling out due to the distance between them, "I know you, apparently better than you gave me credit for."

"Shit," Ban hissed, not anywhere near loud enough for Ginji to hear. "_This was NOT what I planned at all…and I already used the Jagan on him once today..._" Ban clenched his teeth, agitation was apparent in his eyes. "_I only wanted what was best for you, but now I guess I have no choice..._" Ban started walking towards the electrified man with a vague silhouette of a serpent beginning to form around his right arm.

Ginji could tell that Ban was not going to back down, he never backed down from any of their fights, so what was going to make this one any different. Ban was getting closer, he was walking fairly casually, and if not for the fierce look in his eyes one would not have thought he would be prepared for a fight.

Frustration clouded Ginji's mind, not to mention hunger, plus with the rain obscuring his vision, his focus and rationale were severely lacking. Upset at the situation, he issued the first attack. He stretched out his right arm, palm facing he who approached, and let out a steady stream of electricity. The sparks danced around the road, spreading out every which way due to the rain acting as a medium of travel.

Ban easily evaded, jumping out of the line of fire, and appearing a few feet to Ginji's left. The attack wasn't anything serious, just a sign that Ginji was in fact going to fight.

"Ginji, we don't have to fight like this." Ban stated, trying to avoid hanging around any longer than he had to, "Just go back to the Limitless Fortress, and forget about the recovery service, you know neither of us have the energy for this."

Thunder rolled through the clouds, and a flash of lightning lit the sky and surroundings. Ginji wasn't going to let this go, that was apparent. Ban spat out his cigarette, letting the rain douse its remaining embers. He had a plan, it was going to cost him, but he was pretty sure he could pull it off.

"No, Ban-chan…I'm going to figure this out, even if we have to do it the hard way." Ginji replied, sending out sequential shots of electricity at Ban, who dodged them all with ease. Ginji repeated, and Ban followed suit. "Why aren't you fighting back?" Ginji provoked, "Do you not think I'm good enough for you to fight?"

"_Great, he's thinking like THAT now…I've really made him upset this time, he never actually tries to provoke me…_" Ban concluded, a little miffed by Ginji's statement. The sounds of thunder occurred more often than before, and lightning seemed to constantly be illuminating the road. "_And now he's gonna conger up a storm…great._" Ban gave a crooked smile, this worked to his advantage.

"Ginji!" Ban called out due to the rain pounding the asphalt harder than before, all the while evading Ginji's increasing number, and strength of attacks. "Ginji, go back to the Limitless Fortress! This is the last time I'm saying this to you." Ban warned, appearing right behind Ginji, "Go back to where you're actually needed…" he whispered into the Blonde's ear.

"_I'm sick of not feeling needed_," the thought flashed through Ginji's mind, his gaze turned sharply behind him, spinning him around and causing him to stare right into his friend's eyes. "_I'm sick of Ban pushing me away! I can't stand being alone! I don't want to go back there!_" it seemed like hundreds of thoughts, and emotions were pounding against Ginji's mind, "WHY DON'T YOU NEED ME ANYMORE!" Ginji yelled, placing his hands on Ban's shoulders, and with his frustration, summoned forth a massive column of lightning from the sky.

"_Perfect…"_ Ban cracked a smile, narrowing his eyes, preparing for the impact.

As the electricity engulfed the two, neither of them could see anything due to the sheer brightness of their surroundings. Ginji could still feel Ban's shoulders.

"_Why didn't he move? Why is he still here? He could have avoided this! Ban-chan!_" Ginji felt a wave of panic come over him, "Ban-chan? Ban!" Ginji questioned urgently, calling out over the sound of the sizzling electricity surrounding them. He then felt Ban's shoulders move from his grasp. The electricity soon dissipated from around him, and he saw the person who he so desperately wanted to be with, laying in the puddles on the road, completely still.

* * *

_A/N:_ Surprise! I wrote a new chapter! Well, I'm sure you knew that, you just read it! I actually wrote this chapter about a year ago (don't hurt me!), but I didn't feel all that good about it. So, after I read the fanfic all the way through (so I could remember what was going on x_x), I started editing and rewriting this chapter. You should be happy though, it's about 2.5x longer than it was initially. I would really like to finish this fic someday. Also, I know I ALWAYS say this, but forgive me if Ban and Ginji seem too out of character. More Soon! (hopefully) Please Review!


End file.
